MISS AFRICA CHUO KIKUU LUMUMBA MOSCOW RUSSIA.....

MATUKIO KATIKA PICHA, mpiga picha BAKUNDA...

AU calls for sanctions on Eritrea

Islamist insurgents have taken over about one-third of Mogadishu

The African Union has called on the UN Security Council to impose sanctions against Eritrea for supporting Islamist insurgents in Somalia.

It is the first time that the AU has called for sanctions against one of its own members.

The organisation has more than 4,000 troops in Somalia supporting the fragile transitional government.

Meanwhile, heavy fighting resumed in the Somali capital Mogadishu on Saturday, reports say.

Government forces launched a fierce counter-attack on Friday in a bid to regain control of parts the city taken by militants.

Move 'unprecedented'

The BBC's Martin Plaut says the AU's call for sanctions against one of its member states is an unprecedented development.

The AU is normally reticent in any direct criticism of its membership, our correspondent says.

A statement from the 53-member organisation said the UN Security Council should "impose sanctions against all those foreign actors, both within and outside the region, especially Eritrea, providing support to the armed groups".

The AU also calls for the imposition of a no-fly zone and a blockade of sea ports "to prevent the entry of foreign elements into Somalia".

The UN has already expressed concern about the flow of arms into Somalia, where hard-line Islamists of al-Shabab and Hisbul-Islam are battling for control of Mogadishu.

Somali justice - Islamist-style Q&A: Somalia's conflict

Calls for an air and sea blockade of Somalia and for sanctions to be imposed on Eritrea have already been made by the East African regional grouping Igad.

With the whole of Africa now speaking with one voice the demand for sanctions can go forward to the UN, says the BBC's Elizabeth Blunt, in the Ethiopian capital Addis Ababa, where the AU is based.

Somalia's neighbours hope the international naval flotilla stationed off the Somali coast will use its warships and planes to enforce the embargoes, our correspondent says.

Somalia has been subject to a UN arms embargo for many years but weapons are still freely available in the Mogadishu weapons market.

Eritrea is already suspended from Igad and could now be barred from the African Union, analysts say.

Although Eritrea denies arming Islamist forces, insurgent leader Sheikh Hassan Dahir Aweys has reportedly claimed that the country supports their fight.

In an interview with Reuters news agency, he said: "Eritrea supports us and Ethiopia is our enemy. We once helped both countries but Ethiopia did not reward us."

Fierce fighting

Reports from Mogadishu said that at least 45 people were reportedly killed in Friday's fighting - more than half of them civilians - and nearly 200 wounded in one of the bloodiest days in Mogadishu for months.

Residents said there was sporadic gunfire on Saturday and feared the fighting would intensify following reports of militant reinforcements being brought in to tackle the government offensive.

Somalia currently has a moderate Islamist President, Sheikh Sharif Sheikh Ahmed, who was elected by a unity government in January as part of a UN-backed peace initiative.

However, Islamists have recently gained ground and control much of the south. Last week the transitional government also lost control of about one-third of Mogadishu.

Somalia has been mired in civil war for 18 years.

Bado Nyetanyahu anapata upinzani mkubwa toka Marekani

WASHINGTON – Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, ending a three-day trip, is likely to face questions on Capitol Hill on his refusal to endorse the cornerstone of international Mideast policy, the creation of an independent Palestinian state.

Netanyahu was to meet Tuesday with House and Senate leaders and a group of Jewish legislators. He was to lay out his vision of Mideast peacemaking and make his case for strong action against Iran.

President Barack Obama waded deep into the tangle of Mideast politics during four hours of talks with Netanyahu on Monday, telling the Israeli leader to stop expanding Jewish settlements and grasp the "historic opportunity" to make peace with the Palestinians.

With Netanyahu at his side, Obama said he had told the new Israeli leader that Israel must move quickly to resume peace talks with the Palestinians and insisted that negotiations start from an existing agreement to establish an independent Palestinian state in the West Bank and Gaza Strip.

"I suggested to the prime minister that he has a historic opportunity to get a serious movement on this issue during his tenure," Obama said. "That means that all the parties involved have to take seriously obligations that they have previously agreed to."

Obama pointedly told reporters that serious negotiations between Israel and the Palestinians would be possible only if Netanyahu would order an end to the expansion of Jewish settlements in the West Bank.

Netanyahu, whose hard-line government replaced a more moderate Israeli coalition last March, said he was ready to resume peace talks with the Palestinians immediately but refused to say if he would negotiate the creation of a Palestinian state existing alongside Israel.

As for Obama's demand to halt settlement expansion, Netanyahu told reporters who traveled with him that Palestinians must also be held to their obligation to dismantle militant groups.

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, who visits the White House on May 28, has said he would not resume negotiations unless Israel committed to a two-state solution and agreed to freeze settlements. His aides offered praise for Obama but were disappointed with Netanyahu's response.

Obama declared a readiness to seek deeper international sanctions against Iran if it shunned U.S. attempts to open negotiations on its nuclear program. He said he expected a positive response to his diplomatic outreach by the end of the year.

"The important thing is to make sure there is a clear timetable, at which point we say these talks don't seem to be making any clear progress," Obama said. "If that hasn't taken place I think the international community will see that it's ... Iran itself that is isolating themselves."

Netanyahu considers Iran, with its nuclear program, arsenal of ballistic missiles and repeated calls for Israel's destruction, to be his country's greatest threat.

After a White House news conference with Obama, he told Israel-based reporters that he hoped the U.S. policy of engaging Iran succeeds, but added that "Israel reserves the right to defend itself."

Mjadala mkali waendelea Kati ya Marekani na Israel

Obama, Netanyahu to tackle Mideast issues

WASHINGTON – Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is signaling he may resist President Barack Obama's pressure to support Palestinian statehood as the two leaders try to tackle an array of Mideast issues Monday on which they disagree.

A senior aide to Netanyahu, national security adviser Uzi Arad, suggested the Israeli leader might not yield to pressure from Obama for a two-state solution to the Middle East conflict. He also seemed to hint that Israel might consider military action against Iran when he said there was a "sense of urgency" in Israel over the Iranian nuclear threat.

Such rhetoric suggests diplomatic high stakes as the two men hold their first White House meeting against a backdrop of disagreement over several key issues: U.S. overtures to once-shunned Iran and Syria and pressure on Israel to support a Palestinian state.

The Obama administration is trying to promote dialogue with Iran and Syria, Israel's arch foes. Israel fears such efforts could lead to greater tolerance for Iran's nuclear ambitions.

Prior to Netanyahu's trip, confidant Zalman Shoval, a former ambassador to the United States, said the Israeli leader would ask the Americans to give Iran a deadline of "a very few months" to comply with international demands to halt its enrichment of uranium — a process that can be used to build nuclear bombs.

"If by then we have not reached an agreement with you, all other options are still on the table," Shoval added in a clear allusion to a military strike.

Before his Feb. 10 election, Netanyahu derided the latest round of Israeli-Palestinian peace talks, which stalled late last year, as a waste of time.

Jewish settlement activity is another source of potential conflict with the United States.

In Israel on Monday, settlers announced that government officials have begun taking bids to build infrastructure for a fledgling Jewish community deep in the West Bank. The timing of the announcement could cause friction at the Obama-Netanyahu meeting.

Palestinians want Obama to tell the Israelis that they have obligations under an existing U.S.-backed peace plan to accept the two-state solution and stop settlement construction, said Saeb Erekat, a top aide to Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and longtime negotiator.

While not opposing the Obama administration's efforts to promote dialogue with Iran and Syria, Israel is skeptical. Like Washington, it dismisses Tehran's claims that its nuclear program is peaceful and fears the U.S. outreach could lead to greater tolerance for Iran's nuclear ambitions. The Israelis are also worried by the recent diplomatic shuttles to Syria for fear they reward Damascus even as it maintains close ties to Tehran and harbors Iranian proxies that have warred with Israel, Lebanon's Hezbollah and Gaza's Hamas.

Still, there have been mixed signals from the Israelis on the Mideast peace process ahead of the Obama-Netanyahu meeting.

Israel's president, Shimon Peres, said Sunday in Jordan that Netanyahu would abide by agreements signed by his predecessors, including the U.S.-backed Mideast peace plan calling for a two-state solution to the conflict with Palestinians. Peres said progress depended on an end to attacks by Hamas militants and greater Palestinian efforts to ensure Israel's security.

Netanyahu has tried to persuade the Americans that Iran, with its nuclear ambitions and anti-Israel proxies in the Gaza Strip and Lebanon, must be reined in before peacemaking with the Palestinians can progress. Israel's security services see the Netanyahu-Obama meeting as crucial in this regard, and the military chief of staff, the head of military intelligence and the Mossad chief all held lengthy meetings with the prime minister ahead of the trip, defense officials said.

The meetings focused on what Israel sees as Iran's attempt to develop nuclear weapons and on the effect that would have in strengthening Iran's allies in Hamas and Hezbollah and undermining the stability of Western-allied Arab countries.

The officials spoke on condition of anonymity because the meetings were not made public.

Hivi tutakuwa wakubwa lini? Na ukubwa ni nini?

Katika hali isiyokubalika, isiyo ya kawaida na ambayo tunaweza kuiita Utoto, THE THOMCOM imepata taarifa kuwa kuwa baadhi ya wageni (majina tunayo) waliohudhuria sherehe za siku ya kuzaliwa kwa NEEMA MWAMBI walidiriki kuiba baadhi ya vitu vilivyokuwepo katika eneo hilo, kufungua computer za reception za eneo hilo kinyume cha utaratibu na kuvuruga utaratibu uliokuwepo awali. Kana kwamba haitoshi, watu hao walidiriki pia kuingia vyumbani na kufungua mafriji, na kuchukua vitu vilivyokuwepo humo. Wengine walihamisha sukari, vinywaji binafsi vya familia na vitu vingine vingi ambavyo vilikuwa nje ya sherehe hizo. Familia ya Mh. Mwambi imesononeka sana na hali hiyo na familia hiyo isingependa kuona matendo kama hayo yanatokea tena.

Kwa wale ndugu zetu ambao walihusika kwa namna moja au nyingune (Majina tunayo) THE THOMCOM inawashauri kubadilika, kuthibitisha kuwa mmeshakuwa wakubwa, utoto ukae pembeni, elimu tuliyo nayo itumike zaidi katika maisha yetu ya kila siku.

Sherehe ya siku ya kuzaliwa ya hep bethdei ya Neema Mwambi iliyofanyika Moscow Russia jumamosi 16/05/09

Picha na mwandishi wetu Maka .


Hapa nikiwa na Wadau na washiriki wa sherehe hiyo iliyopata kuvunja rekodi kwa kuchangamka sana na kuhudhuriwa na watu wa aina mbalimbali. kutoka kushoto kwangu ni Mzee wa kutumia, papaa wa kuspend mr. Biboze! aliyeko kwenye black ni Bw. Bakunda na anayefuaata ni Nyamandavich....

Wadau, sherehe iltoka kinoma, kimtindo!



Wageni mbalimbali toka Bongo walihudhuria sherehe hiyo.

Makuladiiiiz, ze misosi

wadau mnaona hiyooo?








Mtoto aliyezaliwa siku hiyo Bi Neema Mwambi aking'ara na Head Of Chancery wa ubalozi wa Tanzania ulioko Moscow Russia.

Mtoto huyo aliyezaliwa alionekana mwenye furaha sana na aliwafurahisha watu wengi waliohudhuria sherehe hizo.

Eti wadau! hajapendeza?





Mtoto aliyezaliwa akiingia ukumbini













MMoja wa wageni toka Bongo akijitambulisha katika sherehe hizo zilizoshika moto hadi majogoo....











wageni waalikwa wakiwa wametulia tuli kusikiliza wosia wa Baba mzazi wa mtoto huyo ambaye pia ni Mh. Balozi wa Tanzania Ulioko maeneo ya Pyatnitskaya sterrt huko Moscow Russia.








Misosiiiiiiz! makulajiiiz...Pilau! Kukuuuuz na kadhalika. vinywajiiiiz hadi majogoo, hadi kunakucha...Ilikuwa poa au siyo wadau!!!!

Uchaguzi mwaka 2010

Umoja wa Mataifa hautoweza kusimamia uchaguzi Zanzibar

Großansicht des Bildes mit der Bildunterschrift: Uchaguzi Zanzibar mwaka 2005

Tume ya Uchaguzi Zanzibar (ZEC) imesema haitawezekana uchaguzi mkuu wa mwaka 2010 wa visiwa hivyo kusimamiwa na Umoja wa Mataifa (UN) kutokana na kuwa hatua hiyo ni kwenda kinyume na katiba ya Zanzibar.

Tamko hilo limetolewa leo na Mkurugenzi wa Tume hiyo, Salim Kassim Ali, alipokuwa akizungumza na waandishi wa habari visiwani Zanzibar kuhusiana na matayarisho ya uchaguzi mdogo katika Jimbo la Magogoni unaotarajiwa kufanyika Mei 23 mwaka huu.

Mwandishi wetu mjini Zanzibar Salma Said ana ripoti zaidi.

uchunguzi uliofanywa na Boston Medical Center ya Marekani

В научной литературе, а также в различных популярных изданиях уже неоднократно появлялись сообщения о том, что алкоголь в ограниченных количествах не только не вреден для здоровья, но и, наоборот, оказывает определенное положительное действие на организм. Это предположение наконец-то получило окончательное научное подтверждение.

Как показали исследования, проведенные в Бостонском медицинском центре (США) с участием 8125 добровольцев, умеренное потребление некрепких алкогольных напитков снижает вероятность развития так называемого метаболического синдрома - сложного нарушения физиологических процессов, лежащего в основе развития большинства распространенных заболеваний (в частности, сахарного диабета, атеросклероза кровеносных сосудов, артериальной гипертензии и т.д.). Исключив влияние всех "внешних" факторов - возраста, пола, расы, уровня образования, уровня жизни, курения, физической активности, особенностей питания, - ученые показали, что у людей, потребляющих в течение месяца от 1 до 19 "доз" алкоголя (бокалов вина или кружек пива), вероятность развития метаболического синдрома снижается на 35%, а у людей, потребляющих не менее 20 "доз" - на 66%. Алкоголь устранял все четыре основных компонента этого синдрома - увеличивал содержание так называемого "полезного" холестерина (липопротеинов высокой плотности), снижал содержание "вредного" холестерина (липопротеинов низкой плотности), снижал артериальное давление и увеличивал резистентность организма к глюкозе. При этом, что интересно, положительное действие оказывали только пиво и некрепленое вино, тогда как более крепкие алкогольные напитки, содержащие не менее 15% алкоголя, вызывали противоположный эффект.

Так что не бойтесь алкоголя - при "правильном" подходе он не только практически безвреден, но и, наоборот, полезен для здоровья. Главное - иметь чувство меры и не превращать это "лекарство" в яд.

Bado hali si shwari kwa George Bush

Torture hearings get partisan

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, seen here in April 2009, has come under fire over whether she has long …

Manu Raju Manu Raju – Wed May 13, 1:52 pm ET

Democrats used a Senate hearing Wednesday to push back against GOP allegations that they did not act to stop harsh interrogations authorized by the Bush administration.

One legal expert told a Senate subcommittee the interrogation policies were an “ethical trainwreck.” A former FBI agent testified that the use of harsh interrogation techniques – including waterboarding – did not produce sound intelligence and disputed statements by former President George W. Bush suggesting otherwise.

And Democrats were able to rebuff GOP accusations that they failed to raise a red flag on torture when they had a chance.

Sen. Dick Durbin (D-Ill.), the No. 2 Senate Democrat who sits on the Judiciary subcommittee investigating torture allegations, said that in his four years sitting on the Intelligence Committee and getting briefed on CIA programs, he found himself in the “frustrating position” where he wanted to “walk right out of the Intelligence Committee room and call a press conference” but he couldn’t because the nature of the briefing was classified.

Durbin pressed Philip Zelikow, a former senior State Department official under President Bush and former executive director of the 9/11 Commission, to explain whether the briefings are meant to inform of actions after the fact or before the policy is executed.

Zelikow suggested such discussions typically happen “after the fact,” and that the briefings ensured the White House could pursue their favored policies regardless if members of Congress weren’t completely informed of the program.

“We were told, ‘why are you so upset at this because members of Congress in both parties were OK with it,’” said Zelikow, now a professor at the University of Virginia.

The debate foreshadowed the growing battle in Congress over whether to move forward on prosecuting Bush officials, with Democrats signaling that future hearings were being planned. Federal judge Jay Bybee — one of the authors behind the legal memos who is now under scrutiny —declined an invitation to testify before the panel, Senate Judiciary Chairman Pat Leahy acknowledged Wednesday.

The lone Republican who sat in on the hearing portrayed the testimony as politically motivated and warned that any future inquiries into should also focus on what members of Congress knew at the time that harsh interrogation tactics were being employed.

And he wasn’t afraid to highlight that Speaker Nancy Pelosi was briefed early on about the program.

“I don’t want to go retry Nancy Pelosi, that’s not my goal,” said Sen. Lindsey Graham (S.C.), top Republican on the Subcommittee on Administrative Oversight and the Courts. “But if you’re going to accuse these people in the Bush administration of being evil or of committing a crime, and she was told about it – I want to know what she was told.”

He said that future hearings should include Pelosi and other lawmakers as witnesses.

Graham made those comments to reporters, but he was equally as critical during the two- hour hearing, questioning whether it was a “political stunt.”

“Let’s not unnecessarily impede the ability of our country to defend ourselves against an enemy that as I speak is thinking and plotting their way back to the country,” Graham said.

But the star witness at the standing-room only hearing was Ali Soufan, who boosted Democrats’ claims that waterboarding and other harsh interrogation tactics were “slow, ineffective, slow and harmful to our efforts to defeat al Qaeda.” To protect his identity as a former FBI agent, photographers were requested to clear out of the room and he gave his testimony behind a screen.

Soufan, who worked as an undercover al Qaeda operative and helped investigate the 9/11 attacks, told senators that, “As shocking as these techniques are to us, the al Qaeda training prepares them for much worse — the torture they would expect to receive if caught by dictatorships.”

Soufan, who as an FBI agent interrogated Abu Zubaydah in 2002, disputed statements made by President Bush and his Justice Department that the al Qaeda operative disclosed critical information only after he was subjected to harsh interrogation tactics. In fact, Soufan said other interrogation methods, like “leveraging our knowledge of the detainee’s culture and mindset,” allowed him to gather a key piece of intelligence from Zubaydah about Jose Padilla, who was arrested in 2002 on suspicions of plotting a dirty bomb attack.

“My own personal opinion, based on my own recollection, he was told a half-truth,” Soufan said of Bush’s statements, under questioning from Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse (D-R.I.), chairman of the subcommittee.

Soufan was later removed by FBI Director Robert Mueller after objected to what he called “borderline torture.”

But Graham later pressed Soufan to admit that he wasn’t aware whether tough interrogation techniques on other detainees produced actionable intelligence.

“Mr. Chairman, I think there are some [instances] that enhanced interrogation techniques yielded good information,” Graham said.

And Soufan disputed a 2005 Justice Department memo that credits tough interrogation tactics for prompting Zubaydah to reveal Khalid Sheikh Mohammed as the 9/11 mastermind.

Rais wa Marekani Barack Obama kuzuia kutolewa picha za mateso ya washukiwa wa ugaidi.

Kutolewa picha za mateso kwa washukiwa wa ugaidi huenda kukachochea hisia za chuki dhidi ya Marekani.

Rais wa Marekani Barack Obama amesema kuwa, atafanya juhudi kuzuia kutolewa picha zinazoonyesha mateso yaliyofanywa dhidi ya washukiwa wa ugaidi baada ya madai kuwa huenda zikasababisha kulengwa kwa wanajeshi wa Marekani walioko mataifa ya nje.

Rais Obama alisema kuwa kutolewa kwa picha hizo kutachochea chuki zaidi dhidi ya Marekani na kuyaweka maisha ya wanajeshi wa Marekani walioko mataifa ya kigeni kwenye hatari.

Akizungumza na waandishi wa habari rais Obama alisema kuwa, hata hivyo ukiukwaji wa haki za wafungwa ni jambo ambalo haliruhusiwi.

Obama anachukua hatua hiyo, baada ya utawala wake kusema kuwa utatoa mamia ya picha zinazoonyesha mateso yaliyofanywa kwa wafungwa, katika magereza yanayosimamiwa na Marekani nchini Iraq na maeneo mengine duniani.

Hatua hiyo ni kama pigo kwa baadhi ya wanachama wenye mtazamo wa ukadirifu, ambao wanachukulia kutolewa kwa picha hizo kama njia ya kuwafanyia uchunguzi maafisa katika utawala uliopita wa rais George Bush na kuisafisha sura Marekani.

Obama anachukua hatua hiyo baada ya makamanda wa ngazi za juu na baadhi ya wanachama wa bunge la Marekani, kuelezea kuhusu hatari ya kutolewa kwa picha hizo ikiwemo ya kushambuliwa kwa wanajeshi wa Marekani nchini Iraq na Afganistan.

Obama aliutetea uamuzi wake na kusema kuwa kutolewa kwa picha hizo hakutaongezea chochote kwa kufahamu kile kilichofanywa na watu wachache, na kuongeza kwamba kutolewa kwa picha hizo badala yake kutazidisha hisia za chuki dhidi ya Marekani.

Msemaji wa Ikulu ya Marekani Robert Gibbs alisema kuwa utawala wa rais Obama utaomba kutolewa kwa amri ya mahakama itakayozuia kutolewa kwa picha hizo.

Chama cha haki za kiraia nchini Marekani ambacho kilitaka kutolewa kwa picha hizo kilielezea hasira zake na kusema kuwa, hatua hiyo ni kinyume na ahadi za wakati wa kampeni ya rais Obama juu ya haja ya kuwepo na uwazi.

Wakati huo huo shirika la kimataifa kutetea haki za bidamu la Amnesty International, pia limeelezea kukasirishwa kwake na uamuzi huo. Mkurugenzi wa shirika hilo Larry Cox alisema kuwa wanadamu wamekuwa wakiteswa na kunyimwa haki zao,Wamarekani wamedanganywa na wahusika hawakuchukuliwa hatua zozote.

Hata hivyo uamuzi huo wa rais Obama uliungwa mkono na seneta Lindsey Graham kutoka chama cha Republican na Seneta Joe Liebarman, waliosema kuwa rais Obama amechukua hatua sahihi.

Waziri wa ulinzi wa Marekani Robert Gates alisema pia naye alisema kuwa, alibadilisha mawazo yake baada ya kuyasikiliza maoni ya makamanda wa ngazi za juu katika jeshi la Marekani lililoko nchini Iraq na Aghanistan.

Hata hivyo baadhi ya wanachama wa chama cha Democratic akiwemo spika wa bunge Nancy Pelosi wamekuwa wakitoa wito wa kuundwa kwa tume ya ukweli ya kuchunguza mbinu za mahojiano zilizofanywa na utawala wa rais George Bush.

POPE aitaka Israel kuuvunja ukuta wa Bethlehem

Pope says Bethelehem wall "can be taken down"

BETHLEHEM, West Bank (Reuters) - Pope Benedict on Wednesday said the fortified Israeli wall dividing Bethlehem from Jerusalem could be taken down, if Israel and the Palestinians could remove the walls around their hearts.

On a visit to the town where Christians believe the son of God was born, he said he had seen "overshadowing much of Bethlehem, the wall that intrudes into your territories, separating neighbors and dividing families."

"Although walls can be easily built, we all know that they do not last forever," the pope said. "They can be taken down."

"First, though, it is necessary to remove the walls that we build around our hearts," he added at the end of a day spent in Jesus's birthplace in the Israeli-occupied West Bank.

"My earnest wish for you, the people of Palestine, is that this will happen soon," he said, before returning to Jerusalem and continuing a week-long tour of the Holy Land.

In a speech at a refugee camp school in the wall's shadow, he called it a towering symbol of deadlock in the struggle for peace and a "stark reminder of the stalemate that relations between Palestinians and Israelis seemed to have reached."

"How earnestly we pray for an end to the hostilities that have caused this wall to be built," Benedict said.

The wall did not exist when his predecessor John Paul came in 2000. Israel began raising its barrier of fences and concrete through and around the West Bank in 2002, in what it said was a temporary measure to stop deadly Palestinian bombings.

Palestinians, backed by the World Court, say it is an illegal construction which steals and divides their land.

The papal convoy drove the few miles south from Jerusalem, passing slowly through steel gates in the fortified barrier of towering concrete slabs and watchtowers, to reach the town.

"LEGITIMATE ASPIRATIONS"

Cheers of "Long Live the Pope, Long Live Palestine" greeted his black limousine along the steep, ancient streets, from Palestinians gathered to hear the leader of the world's 1.1 billion Catholics back their independence aspirations.

"The oppressed have become oppressors," said one graffiti slogan on the grey concrete barrier that formed a dramatic backdrop to the pope's speech at the Basic Boys' School.

"Bridges, not walls!" said another.

"It is understandable that you often feel frustrated," the pope said. "Your legitimate aspirations for permanent homes, for an independent Palestinian state, remain unfulfilled. Instead you find yourselves trapped ... in a spiral of violence."

It was imagery and language Palestinians had hoped for. But the German-born pope, criticized for what Jews saw as a lack of emotion in his condemnation of the Holocaust, stressed he saw two sides to the conflict and urged an end to all violence.

Repeating a message he has delivered since the start of his first Middle East tour on Friday, the pope said on arrival in Bethelehem that the Vatican "supports the right of your people to a sovereign Palestinian homeland in the land of your forefathers, secure and at peace with your neighbors."

The two-state solution is backed by Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, by Arab nations and the West. Israel's new prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, has declined so far to endorse it.

He was due to meet the pope in Nazareth on Thursday.

Abbas said the "apartheid wall" was a bid by the Jewish state to drive Palestinian Christians and Muslims from the Holy Land. He spoke of "oppression, tyranny and land expropriation" and said Palestinians wanted a future with "no occupation, no checkpoints, no walls, no prisoners, no refugees."

The pope said Mass for about 5,000 people in Manger Square, next to the Church of the Nativity that marks the spot where Christians believe Jesus was born to Mary in a stable.

It was strange, Pope Benedict said, that Bethlehem was associated with the joy of Jesus's birth "yet here in our midst, how far this magnificent promise seems from being realized."

They applauded when he said he prayed that Israel's embargo "will soon be lifted" from the Hamas-ruled Gaza Strip, where up to 1,400 were killed in a 3-week Israeli offensive in January.

Thousands of Christians left Bethlehem after a Palestinian uprising erupted in 2000 and was met by an Israeli security clampdown and the start of construction of the barrier.

"There are fewer and fewer of us Palestinian Christians but we have strength," said Kandra Zreineh, a 45-year-old mother of four from a village near Bethlehem. "We are proud to have this visit because we are small and I believe he may be able to make a difference for us. I still believe in miracles."

On his arrival, Benedict acknowledged Israel's security concerns, and urged people not to "resort to acts of violence or terrorism" but to seek a genuine peace with their neighbors.

"On both sides of the wall," he said, "great courage is needed if fear and mistrust is to be overcome."

(Additional reporting by Jerusalem and Bethlehem staff; writing by Douglas Hamilton; editing by Alastair Macdonald)

Mfuatilie POPE akiwa Israel

OBAMA, NYETANYAHU NA MUBARAKA KATIKA MPANGO WA AMANI WA MASHARIKI YA KATI

POPE Benedict THE XVI

Mfuatilie POPE akiwa Israel na Palestine

Vatican yashangazwa jinsi waisrael walivyotafsiri vibaya maneno ya POPE

The Vatican was "surprised" at negative reaction in Israel to words spoken by Pope Benedict XVI at Yad Vashem on Monday, Holy See spokesman Rev. Federico Lombardi said Tuesday.

Pope Benedict XVI lays a wreath during a ceremony in Yad Vashem's Hall of Remembrance on Monday.
Photo: Ariel Jerozolimski

"We are a little surprised at the negative reaction to the pope's speech," said Lombardi in an interview with The Jerusalem Post. "At Yad Vashem the pope's speech was a meditation on a very specific theme: shem, or name. The pope spoke of memory, of remembering the names of those persons and the crimes committed against them so that it will never happen again," he said.

Lombardi added that in the past, Benedict had "emphasized other aspects of the Holocaust." He was referring to speeches the pontiff had made during a 2005 visit to a synagogue in Cologne, Germany, and during a trip to Auschwitz the following year in which he singled out Nazi German culpability.

In response to a question by the Post, Lombardi said the pope was not disappointed with Israelis.

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"He is a very patient and sympathetic person," Lombardi said. "But he does believe that he has not been well understood. Israelis have not understood the speech."

Several prominent Israeli figures criticized the speech, including the chairman of the Yad Vashem Directorate, Avner Shalev, the chairman of its Council, Rabbi Yisrael Meir Lau, and Knesset Speaker Reuven Rivlin.

The focus of the criticism was on Benedict's failure to apologize for what Israelis see as the Church's relative inaction on behalf of Jews during the Holocaust, and his omission of the word "Nazi" or "murder."

The Church's position on the Holocaust became even more problematic in January, after the pontiff lifted the excommunication of Bishop Richard Williamson, a Holocaust denier. The move drew fire from numerous Jewish leaders.

Another controversial issue has been the proposed beatification of Pope Pius XII. Pius served during World War II and has been the focus of much of the criticism about the Church's wartime inaction. Benedict's willingness to continue the beatification process, which could lead to sainthood for Pius, was come in for severe criticism in Jewish circles.

Finally, the pope's German origins, his membership in the Hitler Youth - which was mandatory for all German boys at the time - and his service in the German army after being drafted by the Nazi regime, have all been widely publicized in the local media.

As a result, expectations were high among Israelis that the pontiff would go to great lengths to distance himself from that past.

However, Lombardi said the pope had already made clear his position on the importance of remembering the Holocaust, fighting Holocaust denial and emphasizing Germany's guilt.

"He need not repeat himself all the time," said Lombardi. "At Yad Vashem, the pope had a different message to convey, one of remembering."

ISRAEL YAFUNGWA, NDEGE ZAKATAZWA KURUKA ARDHI YA ISRAEL....

Matukio muhimu | 11.05.2009

Amani idumishwe! asema Papa huko Israel

Papa Benedict wa XV1 akiwasili Tel Aviv,Israel

Papa Benedict wa XV1 amewasili mjini Tel Aviv ,Israel akiwa katika ziara yake ya siku nane katika eneo la Mashariki ya Kati.Kiongozi huyo wa kanisa katoliki ulimwenguni alikuwa akitokea nchi jirani ya Jordan

Papa Benedict wa XV1 alitua katika uwanja wa ndege wa Ben Gurion ulioko nje ya mji wa Tel Aviv alikolakiwa na maafisa wa ngazi za juu wa serikali pamoja na viongozi wakuu wa kidini.Punde baada ya kuwasili kiongozi huyo wa kanisa katoliki aliusisitizia umuhimu wa kudumisha amani katika eneo hilo,''Ninaomba kuwa uwepo wenu Israel pamoja na maeneo ya Palestina utafanikiwa kudumisha amani na heshima kwa wakazi wote wa eneo hili lililotajwa katika Biblia.''

Papa akiwa na viongozi wakuu wa serikali ya Israel Israel ilichukua hatua zote kuchukua tahadhari za kiusalama kabla ya kuwasili kwa kiongozi huyo wa kanisa katoliki ulimwenguni.Maelfu ya maafisa wa usalama walishika doria katika eno hilo vilevile mji wa Jerusalem ulifungwa na ndege zote zilipigwa marufuku kutua Israel.

Kiongozi huyo aliyesisitiza kuwa anahubiri amani kote ulimwenguni hakusita kuwahakikishia waliomlaki kuwa nia yake ni njema,''Nimekuja kama wale wote walionitangulia kuzuru maeneo takatifu na kuombea mahsusi amani.Amani katika mataifa tukufu na amani kote ulimwenguni.Nawashukuruni nyote tena kwa kunialika na niwahakikishia nia yangu njema.Mungu awape nguvu…….Mungu awape amani.'' alisistiza Papa.

Papa Benedict hakuchelea kuutilia mkazo msimamo wa Vatican unaosisitiza kuwa unaunga mkono hatua ya kuwa na madola mawili ya Palestina na Israel kama njia ya kuutatua mzozo wa Mashariki ya Kati.Msimamo huo umezua mitazamo tofauti na serikali mpya ya Israel.Kiongozi huyo wa kanisa katoliki alitoa wito wa kupatikana kwa suluhu itakayowawezesha wakazi wote wa eneo hilo kuishi kwa amani katika nchi zao zilizo na mipaka inayotambulika kimataifa.Hata hivyo Papa Benedict hakulitaja neno taifa jambo ambalo serikali mpya ya Israel imekuwa ikijizuia kuwaahidi Wapalestina.Jamii ya kimataifa kwa upande wake imekuwa ikiishinikiza Israel kulitathmini jambo hilo.

Waziri Mkuu wa Israel Benjamin Netanyahu alikuwako katika uwanja wa ndege kumlaki Papa Benedict.Bwana Netanyahu anatarajiwa kukutana na Rais wa Misri Hosni Mubarak kwa lengo la kufanya mazungumzo ya amani kati yao na Palestina.

Itakumbukwa kuwa Mfalme Abdala wa Jordan aliyekutana na Papa Benedict katika kipindi cha siku tatu zilizopita amenukuliwa akisema kuwa uongozi mpya wa Marekani unashirikiana na nchi yake wakiwa na azma ya kufikia makubaliano ya amani na mataifa ya Kiislamu.

Mji wa Bethlehem Kiongozi wa kanisa katoliki ulimwenguni alitoa wito wa kuwaruhusu watu wote wa dini yoyote ile kuyazuru maeneo takatifu mjini Jerusalem.Israel imekuwa ikidhibiti maeneo mengi ya mji huo tangu vita vilivyotokea mwaka 1967.Hata hivyo Israel iliitenga sehemu ya mji huo ukiwemo mji wa Kale mipaka isiyotambulika kimataifa.

Papa Benedict anatazamiwa kukutana na viongozi wakuu wa serikali ya Israel ,viongozi wa kidini pamoja na wakimbizi wa Palestina wakazi wa eneo lililo na uzio uliowekwa karibu na eneo linaloaminika kuwa mahala alipozaliwa Yesu Kristo mjini Bethlehem.Kiongozi huyo pia atazuru makumbusho ya mauaji ya Holocaust ya Yad Vashem atakakoweka shada la maua kwa ajili ya kuwakumbuka Wayahudi milioni sita waliouawa wakati wa vita vikuu vya pili vya dunia.

Mwandishi: Makidamakida

Mhariri: THE THOMCOM

Pope in Israel calls for Palestinian homeland

TEL AVIV, Israel – Pope Benedict XVI called for the establishment of an independent Palestinian homeland immediately after he arrived in Israel Monday, a stance that could put him at odds with his hosts on a trip aimed at easing strains between the Vatican and Jews.

The pope also took on the delicate issue of the Holocaust, pledging to "honor the memory" of the 6 million Jewish victims of the Nazi genocide at the start of his five-day visit to Israel and the Palestinian territories.

Benedict urged Israelis and Palestinians to "explore every possible avenue" to resolve their differences in remarks at the airport after he landed.

"The hopes of countless men, women and children for a more secure and stable future depend on the outcome of negotiations for peace," he said. "In union with people of goodwill everywhere, I plead with all those responsible to explore every possible avenue in the search for a just resolution of the outstanding difficulties, so that both peoples may live in peace in a homeland of their own within secure and internationally recognized borders."

While Benedict's support for a Palestinian homeland alongside Israel is widely shared by the international community, including the United States, it was noteworthy that he made the call in his first public appearance. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, leader of the hard-line Likud Party, has pointedly refused to endorse the two-state solution since his election. But he is expected to come under pressure to do so when he travels to Washington next week.

The pope has tried to improve interfaith relations throughout his four-year papacy. But Benedict has had to tread carefully on his Middle East visit after coming under sharp criticism from both Muslims and Jews for past statements. He is hoping his weeklong trip to the Holy Land, which began with three days in neighboring Jordan, will improve interfaith ties.

Benedict angered many in the Muslim world three years ago when he quoted a Medieval text that characterized some of Islam's Prophet Muhammad's teachings as "evil and inhuman," particularly "his command to spread by the sword the faith. He later expressed regret that his comments offended Muslims.

The Vatican has also come under widespread criticism over the years for not doing enough to stop the genocide — a charge it rejects. And the German-born pope himself has faced questions for his involvement in the Hitler Youth corps during the war. Benedict says he was coerced. The pope also outraged Jews earlier this year when he revoked the excommunication of an ultraconservative bishop who denies the Holocaust.

Later Monday, Benedict is scheduled to lay a wreath at Israel's Yad Vashem Holocaust memorial.

"It is right and fitting that, during my stay in Israel, I will have the opportunity to honor the memory of the 6 million Jewish victims of the shoah," he said, using the Hebrew word for the Holocaust. He said he would "pray that humanity will never again witness a crime of such magnitude."

Dignitaries and religious leaders greeted the pontiff at a red-carpet ceremony at the Tel Aviv airport. Yellow and white Vatican flags fluttered alongside blue and white Israeli banners as an honor guard played in the background.

The pope smiled as he walked along the carpet, flanked by Israeli President Shimon Peres on one side and Netanyahu on the other. Other political leaders, along with black-robed Christian clergymen and Muslim religious leaders, stood in line to shake his hand.

"Your visit here brings a blessed understanding between religions and spreads peace near and far. Historic Israel and the renewed Israel together welcome your arrival as paving the great road to peace," Peres said.

The pope plans to visit holy sites in both Israel and the Palestinian territories. He also will try to draw attention to the shrinking Christian community in the Holy Land.

In Jordan, he said he had a "deep respect" for Islam and toured the country's largest mosque, where he did not pray but had a moment of reflection.

Before heading to Israel, Benedict urged Christians and Muslims at a farewell ceremony in Jordan to work for religious tolerance. He said his visit to a Jordan's largest mosque was one of the highlights so far of his first Middle East pilgrimage.

"I would like to encourage all Jordanians, whether Christian or Muslim to build on the firm foundations of religious tolerance that enable the members of different communities to live together in peace and mutual respect," Benedict said.

During his three days in Jordan, the pope said he hoped the Catholic Church could be a force for peace in the region.

Health care cost cuts could kick-start reform

WASHINGTON – When President Bill Clinton took on health care reform, industry leaders fought back, killing the White House proposal before it could gain any traction. Now those industry leaders are trying to help President Barack Obama find a solution to the problem of uninsured Americans, offering $2 trillion in spending reductions over 10 years.

Hospitals, insurance companies, drug makers and doctors planned to tell Obama on Monday they'll voluntarily slow their rate increases in coming years in a move that government economists say would create breathing room to help provide health insurance to an estimated 50 million Americans who now go without it.

Although the offer from the industry groups doesn't resolve thorny details of a new health care system, it does offer the prospect of freeing a large chunk of money to help pay for coverage. And it puts the private-sector groups in a good position to influence the bill Congress is writing.

Six major groups plan to deliver a letter to Obama and pledge to cut the growth rate for health care by 1.5 percentage points each year, senior administration officials said Sunday. They spoke on the condition of anonymity in order to sketch the offer before full details are revealed at a White House event scheduled for Monday.

The industry groups are trying to get on the administration bandwagon for expanded coverage now in the hope they can steer Congress away from legislation that would restrict their profitability in future years.

Insurers, for example, want to avoid the creation of a government health plan that would directly compete with them to enroll middle-class workers and their families. Drug makers worry that in the future, new medications might have to pass a cost-benefit test before they can win approval. And hospitals and doctors are concerned the government could dictate what they get paid to care for any patient, not only the elderly and the poor.

Obama has courted industry and provider groups, inviting their representatives to the White House. There's a sense among some of the groups that now may be the best time to act before public opinion, fueled by anger over costs, turns against them.

It's unclear whether the proposed savings will prove decisive in pushing a health care overhaul through Congress. There's no detail on how the savings pledge would be enforced. And, critically, the promised savings in private health care costs would accrue to society as a whole, not just the federal government. That's a crucial distinction because specific federal savings are needed to help pay for the cost of expanding coverage.

Costs have emerged as the most serious obstacle to Obama's plan. The estimated federal costs range from $1.2 trillion to $1.5 trillion over 10 years, and so far Obama has only spelled out how to get about half of that.